


A Legend Long Forgotten

by PhantomDreamshade



Category: Deltarune (Video Game)
Genre: But the romance isn't the focus of the story, F/M, Pre-Canon, Tragic Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-07
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-01-24 18:22:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21342679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhantomDreamshade/pseuds/PhantomDreamshade
Summary: Once upon a time, a human and a monster fell into the Kingdom of Darkness, heard a legend, and went on a journey with its prince.But before them, three others fell - a scientist, a songstress, and a paladin of light - and they believed they were part of the same legend. But as words were twisted and the meaning lost, so too were these heroes lost to history. Now, only the shadow of the kingdom they once tried to save remains, haunted—By the demon they left behind.
Relationships: Jevil & Seam (Deltarune), King of Spades/Shyra, W. D. Gaster & Sans
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	1. Shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We meet our heroes.

“Oh come now, Gaster,” Alvin said, rolling his eyes and giving the skeleton a pat on the back. Gaster flinched, retreating into the sleeves of his black turtleneck sweater. It was almost a direct contrast to the crisp, sparkling white polo the turtle monster wore to match the sparkling gleam of his polished shell and short, well-groomed pink hair. “I’ve been craving a nice game of pinochle and that spare classroom is open. The Angel knows you could use a little social interaction instead of heading straight home and doing… whatever it is you do at home every day.”

“I happen to enjoy my alone time, Alvin,” Gaster said. “And may I remind you that I have a toddler-aged younger brother at home that no longer has access to a parent for his care? I can’t leave him alone with the babysitter all hours of the day. I barely won custody of him as it is.”

Alvin stopped in his tracks. “Oh,” he said, trying to find a response. “I’m… I’m very sorry. I know that you’ve been… going through a rough time, since… the accident. That’s why I… ugh. I’m sorry. You’ve just had a lot going on lately and I thought I’d offer to take your mind off things for an hour or two.”

Gaster sighed deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his tired eyes for a moment. The past few months had been taxing beyond belief. His late parents had left Gaster a hefty inheritance, but he knew that wouldn’t last forever. It was already draining far faster than he hoped.

Gaster was a brilliant young man, and he knew it. His love for the sciences, his ambition to decode the mysteries of the universe wasn’t just a dream, it was a  _ need  _ for him. He refused to end up wallowing in some dead-end job, scraping pennies off the floor to keep himself and his young brother fed. But such a thing would be unavoidable unless he could receive the scholarships he needed to attend a university - he couldn’t use their savings to pay for college. Those had to last until he could get a stable job, one in a science field where he could work his way up and do the research he craved. The only other option would be to give Papyrus up to an adoption agency or the foster care system - and that was equally unviable. Papyrus was the only family Gaster had left.

That meant his GPA had to be nothing short of perfect. His test scores needed to be jaw-droppingly high. Every word of every essay had to be pristine, every fact and statistic had to be known by heart, and every spare second had to be devoted to developing his hungry mind. He didn’t have time for friends. Those were a luxury he could no longer afford.

And yet…

“One game of cards,” Gaster said at last. He could make this allowance for an old childhood friend. Burning himself out wouldn’t solve his problems either. What harm could one game of cards do to his future?

“See? You knew I was right all along!” Alvin chuckled. “Come, we can play in the spare classroom. We should—” The turtle froze in his tracks, staring at someone. “...Shyra?!”

Levitating in the hallway was a siren monster, her seafoam-green scales dusted with makeup that complimented her bubblegum-pink hair. “Aw, hi Alvie!” Shyra said, floating over with a giggle. “Gosh, you’ve gotten so big and toned! You’ve turned into a very handsome young man, huh?”

“Oh, stop it,” Alvin laughed, forgetting Gaster was there for a moment. “What are you doing here? I thought you were in your third year of music school! Shyren talks about you all the time, you know.”

“Aw, my sister’s such a sweetheart. I’m on fall break right now so I came back home to see everyone and decided to see how my old high school was doing. How are you two?”

“We were just going to play some cards,” Alvin said. “Would you care to join us for a game? I’d love to catch up with you.”

“That sounds wonderful, actually,” Shyra said. “What about you, Gaster? I… just wanted to offer my condolences. You’re so brave.”

“...Thank you,” Gaster said, nodding his head politely. He’d heard enough condolences to last a lifetime. No amount of them would give him back the life he once had.

Still, it was difficult to be mad at Shyra. Even when Gaster was a freshman and she was a senior, everyone at the school knew her. She’d always been the popular girl in school - beautiful, smart, talented - and also managed to be almost infuriatingly nice to everyone. Gaster doubted there was a single person in the school during her stay that hadn’t experienced a sincere and pleasant conversation with her, whether they be other popular students, run-of-the-mill average ones, or nerdy pseudo-outcasts like Gaster himself. Alvin had mostly filled that role once she left, though it was his sports prowess and pleasant bravado rather than singing talent and friendliness that made everyone like him, apparently.

“Well, we should get this started so Gaster can get home to his brother,” Alvin said. “We’ll need to grab a pack of cards first, though. There should be some in the school, right? In the supply closet, maybe?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me,” Gaster said.

“Alright then - we’ll head that way,” Alvin said, marching off toward the closet with Gaster and Shyra trailing behind. 

“So, Gaster - I think Shyren told me you’re planning on going to Ebott University, right? That’s very prestigious! How is that going?” Shyra asked.

“Their selection processes are rather… selective,” Gaster said. “But if I maintain my current grades and am able to provide a strong entrance essay, I am optimistic about my chances.”

“Oh I’m sure you’ll get in,” Shyra said, smiling brightly. “Everyone knows how smart you are! The world is lucky to have bright minds like yours.”

The room grew darker as Gaster contemplated if he should just accept the encouragement or sulk about how his life wouldn’t be nearly that easy. He glanced at the windows at the ends of the hallway, assuming that a cloud had passed over the sun. He blinked when he realized that wasn’t the case.

“Wow. I didn’t realize the supply closet was this big,” Alvin said. “Or dark! Why isn’t the lightswitch by the door? ...Ugh, I bet the room doesn’t even have one being a closet. Hold on, I’ll just search around for some cards real quick.” Alvin disappeared into the unnaturally dark room and Gaster felt an acute wave of unease wash over him.

“...Alvin?” Shyra said, her voice betraying that she felt a similar unease. “I… I don’t think you should be looking around in the dark like that. You might break something.”

“Oh, it’s basically all copy paper in here,” Alvin said. “Get in here and help me look so we can get to playing faster.”

Shyra and Gaster shared a glance before following Alvin inside. It was impossibly dark in this room. Gaster reached out with a hand for a shelf and caught nothing but air.

“Just how big  _ is _ this closet?” Alvin asked, nothing but his voice piercing through the shadows. Gaster stopped close to the door.

“...Something isn’t right here,” Gaster said. “I think we should leave.”

“I agree with Gaster,” Shyra said. “This room doesn’t have… walls…”

“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s just really bi—”

What little light was available to see with disappeared as the door slammed shut. Gaster reached for the door, trying to find the doorknob, and once again found his fingers swinging through empty air.

“Guys! If you close the door then we  _ definitely  _ won’t be able to find the cards,” Alvin said.

“Gaster, open the door please,” Shyra said.

“There  _ is  _ no d—”

A low rumbling in the ground nearly knocked Gaster off his feet. He looked down, the dim glow provided by his eyelights allowing him to see the tiles of the floor start to fall away into nothingness. He staggered backward as the floor began to fall out from under him, slipping as the ground evaporated underneath him. He reached out, trying to grab ahold of something, but he only found loose tiles in free fall like he was.

He fell. And fell. And kept falling.

* * *

Everything ached. Gaster pushed himself onto his knees, blinking open his eyes. It was dark, but not the same oppressive darkness that had consumed the closet. His eyes fixated on his sleeves - they weren’t the matte knitting of his sweater, but fine black silk trimmed with intricate gold designs. He stood up, looking over himself - his clothes had been replaced by a black robe covered in ornate gold symbols and ornamentations.

“H… Hello?” Gaster called out. His words echoed endlessly across the lightless landscape before him. “Alvin? Shyra? Hello?”

There was only one path forward - he was on some sort of sheer cliff, an inky void both above and below him. He followed the trail with increasing speed, calling out repeatedly and desperately hoping for a response.

“Gaster?—”

The reply was faint, but Gaster was able to pinpoint the direction. He slid down a dusty slope and found Shyra gazing around in confusion, her appearance similarly altered. Her hair had gone cherry-red with an ostentatious fuschia bow tied into it, and her scales had gone cyan.

“Gaster! Oh thank goodness! W-Where on earth are we?” Shyra asked.

“...I don’t know,” Gaster said. “Though if I had to make a guess I doubt we’re on earth at all.”

“What do you mean?”

“...The only possible explanation I could provide would be an alternate dimension,” Gaster said. “But I have no real way to test this hypothesis. Where is Alvin?”

“Over here!” The turtle-monster said, running over in a suit of gleaming white-and-gold armor. “Do any of you have any idea what happened?!”

“We were just discussing that,” Gaster said. “I doubt we have any more clues than you do.”

“I did see a town,” Alvin said. “But I heard you guys yelling so I came this way first.”

“A town…?” Shyra looked at Alvin, still bewildered by the whole situation.

“Yeah! Surely someone there will be able to tell us what’s going on, right?”

“...I don’t see any other courses of action we could take at this point in time,” Gaster said. “Lead the way, Alvin.”

…Maybe a card game was a dangerous thing after all.


	2. A Legend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gaster, Shyra, and Alvin meet a prince.

“See? The town’s right over there like I told you,” Alvin said.

“...Who makes a house pitch black like that?” Shyra asked, half under her breath. “Who makes a whole _ town _pitch black like this?”

“Let’s try not to make a poor first impression and insult the locals’ taste in architecture,” Gaster said, rolling his eyes a little. “...These one look like shops. Look at the signs above the doors.”

“...And how the buildings kinda arc overhead,” Alvin said, looking upward. “Doesn’t that defy physics or something, Gaster?”

“Our physics, maybe,” Gaster said.

“What kind of shop just sells swords, though?” Shyra said, gesturing to one of the buildings. “Or… question marks?”

“Judging by how Alvin is dressed it can’t be that unusual,” Gaster said. Then he froze. “They seem… oddly similar to an RPG system.”

“Gaster be serious, please,” Alvin said.

“...What… if I suffered some kind of severe head trauma and this is all an elaborate hallucination…?” Gaster said.

“Gaster,” Shyra said, hovering in front of him and looking him straight in the eyes. “We need you here right now. Please don’t start having an existential crisis. We’re all here and we’re all in this together. Okay?”

“You’re right,” Gaster said, clearing his throat and adjusting the collar of his robes. “...Now. We came here to ask someone for help but I have yet to see a single person roaming the streets,”

“...You’re right,” Alvin said. “That’s kinda creepy.” He tried to open the door to the nearest shop and it didn’t budge.

“I wonder if they saw us coming and decided to hide for some reason,” Shyren said. “Though… it feels like maybe this place hasn’t been lived in for a very long time.”

“This just leaves us with more questions and no answers,” Gaster sighed. “There must be something or someone here that could at least give us a clue as to what’s going on.”

“Uh… what about that thing?” Alvin peeked around the side of one of the buildings and pointed to something in the distance. Gaster and Shyra looked where he was pointing to see some kind of castle far in the distance, a fountain of blackness erupting from it and vanishing into the darkness of the sky above.

“That… seems as good a place as any to start,” Gaster said, walking down the main road as Alvin and Shyra followed close behind him. The castle seemed even older than the rest of the town, the doors pouring dust onto the floor as Alvin and Gaster pushed them open. 

Alvin squinted in the darkness, making out a cloaked figure in the center of the foyer. He drew his sword and pointed it at them. “Who goes there?!”

Gaster smacked his arm down. “You don’t even know who that is, don’t point a sword at them!” he hissed. Shyra rolled her eyes and drifted towards the person.

“Excuse me… I think we may have gotten a little lost,” she said. “Would you mind helping us?”

The figure remained silent for a moment before moving its hooded gaze to stare at her. “ L i g h t n e r s , ” it said. It had a deep, bassy, slow voice. “ S o y o u h a v e f i n a l l y a r r i v e d . ”

Shyra moved backward a little. “U-Um… I don’t know what a Lightner is, we just wanted direc…” Her voice trailed off as the figure rose from the floor.

“ I h a v e w a i t e d a v e r y l o n g t i m e t o m e e t a l l o f y o u , ” the figure said.

“If that’s true, then mayhaps you could do us a favor and remove thine cowl, friend,” Alvin said, suddenly putting on a less-than-successful knightly accent either in an attempt to be intimidating or to hide that he was scared. Gaster narrowed his eyes at him in a what-are-you-doing manner.

“ . . . A s y o u w i s h , " the figure said. An inexplicable wind began to spiral out from underneath its robe and the three averted their eyes as it blew away to reveal…

A short, squat skeleton wearing a sloppily-buttoned coat and a goofy grin. “sup,” he said. They all just stared at him, dumbfounded. “did i getcha?”

Gaster broke out into ridiculous, snorting laughter and the other skeleton grinned wider. Shyra and Alvin looked between the two, bewildered.

“What on earth?” Shyra said, looking at Gaster pointedly.

“I’m sorry,” Gaster said, catching his breath. “I’m sorry. That just… I have been very tense and that subverted my expectations entirely.”

“at least we know one of you has a sense of humor,” the skeleton said, winking. “name’s comic sans, but you can just call me comic. s’shorter.”

“Wh— I— What in the name of the Angel is going on?” Alvin said, his composure completely gone.

“you’re in the kingdom of darkness, buddy,” Comic said. “so… on behalf of the kingdom, welcome i guess.”

“...Thank you?” Shyra said. “Um… so where exactly _ is _ this kingdom?”

“in relation to where you come from, you mean?” Comic asked. Shyra nodded. “it’s sort of an alternate dimension kinda thing. though your home and mine have been pretty closely linked since… well. forever.”

“I knew it,” Gaster said, smiling. “...Ahem. Please continue.”

“best i can explain our dimension kinda... supports yours. like a foundation,” Comic said.

“Or our shadow,” Alvin said.

“yeah, sure, i guess that works too,” Comic said.

“Do you have any idea _ why _we’re here though?” Shyra said. “Did we just stumble into the wrong closet or did someone bring us here or…?”

“it wasn’t me, if someone did,” Comic said. “like i said though, i _ have _ been waiting for you guys for a long, long time. ...well. one of you, at least.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Alvin asked.

“there’s this whole prophecy thing that i’m assuming involves you guys,” Comic shrugged. “i’ve been waiting here my whole life to tell it to someone so i’d appreciate if you’d listen for a minute.”

“Wait, wait - your whole life?” Shyra asked, looking around. “Is… isn’t there anyone else here?”

“in this town specifically? nah,” Comic said. “where do you think my amazing sense of humor comes from? gotta entertain myself somehow.”

“...You poor thing,” Shyra said, giving him a look somewhere between pity and compassion. “What about your parents? A family?”

Comic just shrugged again. “i just woke up here one day and knew what i had’ta do. hasn’t been that bad. though if we’re being honest i wish you didn’t make me wait _ quite _ so long.” He threw a wink in at the end.

“Well we’re here now,” Alvin said, confidence back in his voice but dropping the ridiculous accent. “So please, tell us this prophecy, Comic.”

“right,” Comic sighed. “so basically, the prophecy talks about how light and dark live in balance, yada yada yada. and if that balance goes kaput, the apocalypse’ll happen and stuff. but when that happens, three heroes will appear - a human, a monster, and a prince from the dark - and seal the fountains and, y’know. stop it.”

Alvin squinted at him beneath his helmet’s visor. “Prophecies usually have very, _ very _ specific wording,” he said. “That can’t possibly be what it says.”

“eh, i didn’t really bother rehearsin’ it or anything,” Comic said. “i have it written down word for word if it’s really that important to you.” He handed Alvin a sheet of paper covered in sloppy handwriting and the turtle began reading over it carefully.

“There’s one problem,” Shyra said. “We’re all monsters. There aren’t any humans with us. Honestly I don’t even remember there _ being _ any humans in Hometown.” She looked back at Comic. “Wait… does that mean you’re a prince, then?”

“yup,” Comic said. “and i realized you didn’t bring a human with you. but, who knows, maybe you aren’t all supposed to come at once. my guess is that _ one _of you is the person i’m lookin’ for.”

“...Interesting,” Gaster said, taking the paper from Alvin and reading through it. “When it says Fountains - is it referring to that strange geyser we saw emanating from the castle?”

“yup. that would be the fountain of darkness,” Comic said. “it kinda… you know. makes this whole place exist so i would appreciate you _ not _ sealing that one,” Comic said. “but if another fountain was to appear, that would screw with the whole balance thing. now i haven’t seen an extra one yet but maybe that just means you’re actually early. who knows, maybe the human will show up when things actually start going wrong.”

“So… what are we supposed to do then? We can’t just _ stay _ here. We need to get home,” Shyra said.

“yeah... that’s true,” Comic said. “hey, i have an idea. let’s head west to card castle, i know they have a really powerful magician there. he might be able to send you home. and maybe there we could figure out which one of you three is the person i’m looking for.”

“...It’s as good a plan as any of us have,” Gaster said, glancing at Alvin and Shyra who both nodded. “Lead the way, your Highness.”


End file.
